Grain-car door



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2. C.. L. NBWSTROM 8v 'I'. H. MILLER.

GRAIN GAR DOOR.

No. 602,167. PatentedApr. 12,1898. I

I oyen/'627407771 Tha/maJJC/kr Nrrnn STATES ATENT CHARLES L. NEWSTROM AND THOMAS H. MILLER, OF MAIDEN ROOK,

' WISCONSIN.

GRAIN-CAR DOOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 602,167, dated April 12, 18.98.

Application filed September 15, 1897. Serial No. 651,765. (No model.)

.T0 all whom t may concern.:

Be it known that we, CHARLES L. NEW- sTRoM and THOMAS H. MILLER, citizens of the United States, residing at Maiden Rock, in the county of Pierce and State of Wisconsin, have invented a new and useful Grain-Car Door, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention vrelates to doors for graincars, and particularly to fastening devices therefor, the function of such fastening devices being to prevent the escape of grain from the car to which the door is applied; and the object in view is to provide grain-doorsupporting devices Varranged to occupy the minimum space within the car, to avoid interference withthe cargo of a different class from grain, and to insure the efficient fastening of the door when in its operative position, while allowing the displacement thereof to be accomplished with facility.

Further objects and advantages of this invention will appear in the following description, and the novel features thereof will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims. l

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portion of a car provided with aA gram-door constructed in accordance with`V Eig. 2 is a similar view showour invention. ing the door from the inside andv illustrating the contiguous portions of the car. Fig. 3 is a vertical section showing in dotted lines the positions occupied by the door-sections when not in use. Fig. 4 is a detail view in perspective of one of the door-clamps.

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding partsin all the'ligures of the drawings.

The parallel guides 1, upon which the door is mounted to slide by means of eyes 2, are arranged contiguous to theV facing sides of the door-frame timbers, and hence outside of the plane of the inner surface of the car, whereby the .guide-eyes are arranged at intermediate points of the upper edge of the door. In the construction illustrated the door is of sectional constructiomas shown at 3 and 4, the upper or narrow section 3 having a rabbeted lower edge 5 to receive the upper edge of the main or lower section 4,

4erative positions.

end edges.

and said upper or auxiliary section also having a cleat 6, extending terminally beyond the edge of the body portion of said auxiliary section and overhanging the rabbet therein to bear against the exterior surface of the main door-section, whereby in practice the door-sections are mutually supporting, one being incapable of bowing or bulgingwithout the other. The guide-eyes with which these door-sections are respectively provided are deflected outwardly to traverse the guiderods, and the latter are provided at'their upperextrem'ities with olfset upper and-lower seats 7 and 8 to receive vsaid guide-eyes when the door-sections are in their folded or inop- (Indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 3.) Said door-sections are held in their folded positions by means of swinging latches 9, suspended from the roof-timbers of the car.

Secured to the inner surfaces of the side timbers of the door-frame are wear-plates 10, against which the exterior surfaces of the door-sections are adapted to bear when in their normal positions, and arranged parallel with said wear-plates areclamp-bars 1 1, having rabbeted inner sides to form longitudinal biting edges 12 to bear against the inner surfaces of the door-sectionsparallel with their These clamp-bars are provided at their upper and lower extremities, respectively, with arms 13 and 14,`the former of which are longitudinallyy slotted, as shown at 15, to operate in Vconnection with xedguide- Ipins 17, and the latterof which are provided with perforations mounted upon pivot-pins 18. The slotted arms of thefclam'p-bars are arranged contiguous to the upper ends thereof to allow lateral displacement of said upper ends of the bars to disengage the lower edge of the main-doorsection whenthe latter has been raised in the door-frame preparatory to folding parallel with the roof-timbers of the car. Various means may be employed for drawing the clamp-bars outwardly into firm contact with the terminaledges of the door-secftions and holding said ydoor-sections in' such close contact with the., door-frame as to prevent grain from escaping; but a simple and preferred form of construction is illustrated IOO in the drawings, wherein drums 2O are mounted in the car-frame preferably between the exterior sheathing and the lining, as shown clearly in Fig. 2, and connected flexibly, as by chains 2l, with intermediate points of the clampbars,whereby the rotation of the drums causes the tightening of the connections and the firm gripping of the door-sections by the clamp-bars. In order to facilitate the manipulation of the clamp-actuating devices,we preferably extend the drum-spindles through the side beams of the door-frame and it the same with heads 22, having key-seats or kerfs adapted to be engaged by a crowbar or pinchbar or other equivalent tool. To prevent the unwinding of the drums, said heads are preferably provided with ratchet-teeth engaged by pawls 23. Access is given to the drums and flexible connections by means of doors 24C let into the car-lining contiguous to the clampbars.

From the above description it will be seen that the door-sections may be drawn into contact with the frame with any desired force to secure the contents of the car against leakage, and the only portions of the device which project into the interior of the car are the clamp-bars, and these but slightly, wherebyV the car may be used for transporting cargoes of different classes, such as lumber, without material reduction of its capacity. Furthermore, it will be seen that the clamp-bar-operating devices are exteriorly exposedgvhereby the manipulation thereof may be accomplished without entering the car.

Various changes in the form, proportion, and the minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention.

Having described our invention, what we claim is l. The combination with parallel guiderods, of a sectional car-door having its members provided with eyes mounted to slide upon said guide-rods,said members being of greater width than the car door opening to bear against the inner surfaces of the sides of the frame, clamp-bars to engage and hold the edges of said car-door members in contact with the sides of the door-frame, and movable outwardly toward the same, and operating devices for moving the clamp-bars, substantially as specified.

2. The combination with guide-rods and a car-door mounted to slide upon said guiderods and of greater width than the door-frame to bear against the inner surfaces of the sides thereof, clamp-bars cut away at their inner surfaces to form biting edges to bear against the inner surface of the door, and movable outwardly to force the door against the frame, and means for securing said bars in operative contact with the door, substantially as specified.

3. The combination with guide-rods and a car-door mounted to slide thereon, of clampbars adapted to engage the car-door contiguous to its side edges, to hold the latter in contact with the inner surface of the car-door frame, said clamp bars being pivotally mounted for lateral movement at their upper extremities, and `means for operating the clamp-bars to engage the door, substantially as specified.

4. The combination with guiderods and a car-door mounted to slide thereon, of clampbars adapted to engage a car-door and hold it in contact with the inner surface of the door-frame, said clamp-bars being provided with lateral arms respectively pivoted and having a slotted connection with the carframe, and means for securing the clamp-bars in their adjusted positions, substantially as specified.

5. The combination with guide-rods and a car-door mounted to slide thereon, of clampbars adapted to engage and secure the cardoor in Contact with the inner surfaces of the door-frame, drums having flexible connections respectively with said clamp-bars, and means for securing the drums at the desired adjustment, substantially as specified.

6. The combination with a car-door arranged to terminally overlap the inner snrfaces of a car-door frame, of clamp-bars for engaging and holding the car-door in contact with the frame, drums operatively connected with the clamp-bars and having exposed heads whereby they may be manipulated from without the car, and means for securing the drums at the desired adjustment, substantially as specied.

7. The combination with a car -door arranged to terminally overlap the inner surfaces ofthe door-frame, of clamp-bars adapted to engage and secure the door in Contact with said surfaces, drums fiexibly connected with the clamp -bars and having exteriorly-exposed heads provided with tool-seats, and locking-pawls for engaging ratchet-teeth on said heads, substantially as specified.

In testimony that we claim the foregoing as our own we have hereto axed our signatures in the presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES L. NEVVSTROM. THOS. H. MILLER. Witnesses:

J. MEALEY, F. M. WHITE.

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